Medicare Contractors Can Assess Overpayments, DC Circ. Hears

Law360, New York (December 6, 2012, 7:45 PM EST) -- Medicare contractors can extrapolate provider overpayments from samples they or other contractors have collected, not just ones collected by the U.S. Department Health and Human Services staff, the agency told the D.C. Circuit on Wednesday.

According to the department's brief, the Medicare Act authorizes HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to perform her functions either directly through her staff or by contract, as she deems necessary. Thus, Medicare contractor Cahaba Safeguard Administrators LLC’s determination that Gentiva Healthcare Corp. had made a “sustained or high-level” error in its payment...